Recent Advances in Publishing

Publishing is an industry that has changed considerably over the years. However, recent advances in technology have made certain changes possible in the publishing field that many could not have predicted even just a few decades ago.

While there are any number of advances have been instrumental in moving the publishing industry forward, some of the most notable in recent years have been the rise in prominence of e-books, print on demand services, self publishing, accessible publishing, and green publishing.

E-Books

The rise of e-book popularity in recent years has been staggering, with 99.5 million e-books sold in January of 2012 alone. Whether reading on Amazon’s Kindle, the Nook, or an iPad, e-books have become incredibly popular, especially among younger readers.

Print on Demand

In years past, publishers would have to estimate popularity for a given book or other document and print, in advance, the number of copies they thought they would need. Now, because of greater efficiencies in printing and the speed with which even large-scale projects can be completed on demand, publishers can complete orders on a need-to-print basis, eliminating wasted resources.

Self Publishing

Aspiring writers used to have few options for getting their work published if they couldn’t find a publisher willing to publish their work. However, now there are numerous print and digital self publishing options available to individuals who are willing to pay a reasonably small fee. As an editor at Alea Publishing, I’ve been pushing my friend, a manager at a custom home builder, to publish a book of the amazing homes that his company has put together. I’ve always thought it would make for a good coffee table book…we’ll see if he ever takes my advice.

Accessible Publishing

With the ability to easily digitize a document and convert a file into XML, documents can be manipulated and made available to individuals with a number of reading needs, including those looking for text with larger print, or text that is compatible with audio readers.

Green Publishing

Green publishing is a newer term given to describe the environmentally-friendly practices that have arisen recently in the publishing industry, primarily the result of increased electronic / digital publishing, as well as print on demand publishing.